HUNGARORING

Overview

Situated just outside beautiful Budapest the Hungaroring is a modern track, designed and built in the mid eighties. Favoured by drivers and teams because of the town of Budapest, the track itself is not very popular.

Hot and dusty: those are the keywords for the Hungaroring. Held in the middle of a central European summer, it is the only established circuit in the Grand Prix calendar never to have seen a wet race. The circuit is generally dusty due to underuse throughout the season, and this dustiness is heightened by the circuit's location in a valley near Budapest, attracting dust and litter from the city. Its location on sandy soil also means that if a car drops a wheel off the track, it kicks up massive clouds of dust.

Normally an underused circuit becomes faster over the weekend as the track rubbers in; however, with the Hungaroring this generally does not happen, because the track can get so dusty so quickly. This is a circuit where there is often a heightened advantage to running late in qualifying. Many corners, no really long straights, the bumpy surface and the dust make it almost impossible to overtake. Currently the FIA is looking into ways to increase the overtaking possibilities. This has already led to remove a chicane and create a sharp right hand turn just before the start finish straight.

Specifications:

• Starting time: 14:00 CET
• Local time: CET
• Circuit: Hungaroring
• First GP: 1986
• Circuit length: 4.381 km
• Race laps: 70 
• Total distance: 306.67 km
• Winner 2006: Jenson Button, Honda
• Fastest Lap: Michael Schumacher 2004, Ferrari 1:19.071 in lap 29

 
History:

Built in 1985 in a record time of 8 months just a few kilometres north-ost of the Hungarian capital Budapest ander the impetus of Bernie Ecclestone who wanted an Eastern European venue for the F1 Championship the track is in a 110 hectar huge natural valley, surrounded by 50 hectars of rolling hillside.

With this exceptional natural advantage - being situated in a natural amphitheatre - almost 70 percent of the racetrack is visible from any point. This is the reason why it is called "The Shallow Plate", it is because the spectatores are watching races sitting by the side of an imaginary plate.

The F1 event is always well attended by local fans, as well as by many Germans and Austrians and later years by the many followers of Mika Häkkinen.

The constantly improved and reconstructed circuit, with excellent infrastructure which meets the strictest requirements of the F1 and is appreciated by the FOM and FIA host local car and bike races and is popular venue for testing as well as for incentive events. Hungaroring Circuit meets the highest technical requirements and has became one of the safest racetracks in the world. 

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